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BearSpray
Shack

BearSpray
Shack

Brown bear
Locations around Glacier
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Glacier National Park

Locations around Yellowstone
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Yellowstone National Park

Locations in Grand Teton
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Grand Teton National Park

Bear Spray Rental Kiosk

How it Works

Bear Spray Shack is similar to your favorite red movie rental box but for bear spray. You can rent AND return our bear spray canisters straight at the rental machine.

We geek out on technology, and the programing behind Bear Spray Shack validates that every canister rented will be un-sprayed, at full volume, and safe for re-distribution.

Walk-up Rentals

Bear Spray Shack has the first and only completely automated bear spray rental vending machines. Just walk-up and follow the on screen instructions. Check our Real Time Inventory Status before heading out.

Scan the Can

Every canister has a QR code on the side that will bring you to our On the Go page. Perfect for those who need instructions on how to use bear spray or anyone wanting a quick refresher.

Any Location Drop Off

Multiple 24/7 Shack locations means returning your can of bear spray has never been easier. Even if you’re out exploring nature from dusk to dawn, you can conveniently return your rental to any location, any time.

When it comes to preserving your safety, peace of mind, and outdoor wildlife playgrounds at large, we believe that arming yourself with bear spray shouldn’t be a complicated or costly process.

West Yellowstone Shack

How To Use
Bear Spray

If you’re not sure where to start with bear spray, we’ve got some tips and a step-by-step guide for how to use it that will make your life a lot easier—and maybe even save it!

Check out our Instagram for cool pics, giveaways, and captions that our moms brag about to their friends.

  • Tomorrow is National Wildlife Day! If you’re following us, we assume you’re passionate about bears, and hopefully other wildlife too. But your love of wildlife doesn’t have to be concentrated to September 4th. You can learn, participate, and advocate for conservation all year long.

📖 Learn: What are the local and national wildlife issues you care about? Who has accurate and digestible information? Start small by finding resources, conservation organizations, and research happening near you.
🌲 Participate: You can volunteer on public lands near you to help maintain infrastructure like trails, restrooms, and trash cans, participate in habitat restoration projects or a trash pick-up day. All these actions mitigate our impacts on wildlife habitat. There might even be a wildlife rescue or rehabilitation center near you that accepts volunteers! 
📣 Advocate: This doesn’t have to be big. Advocacy can look like supporting local groups working towards educating the public or providing tools to encourage better human-wildlife interactions. It could be speaking up in a meeting about designating open spaces or conservation easements. For example, Wyoming Wildlife Advocates recently put out a call for volunteers, which involves distributing bear resistant tools to the community and discussing conservation issues at public events.
  • We love to hear where customers have explored after renting from us! Whether you’re headed to your campsite, on a day hike, or backpacking, you can rest assured that your canister is ready should you need to deploy it. Each canister passes multiple verification checks before it’s allowed to be re-rented. Every rental helps you have safe adventures and protects bears. 

Have a Bear Spray Shack memory to share? Drop a photo in the comments.
  • You might have seen a fellow hiker jingling around like it’s Christmas in July, or maybe you have some bear bells of your own. But…do bear bells keep you safer, or are they just part of a backcountry band? 🔔

Bear bells are marketed as a way to alert bears of your presence and reduce surprise encounters, rather than deter them. But is the bell worth your bucks? Tom Smith, a professor of wildlife sciences at BYU in Provo, UT says “From a biological perspective nothing in their world trains them that tinkling means anything.” His research also indicated that bears ignored human voices at normal conversational volume, but took note once they reached 110 decibels. Other research has shown that bell sounds reach shorter distances than human voices. 🗣️

What actually works: Bears might not hear your bear bells, especially if they are small or you’re hiking in heavy wind or near water. If bears do hear the bells, they’re probably not thinking “That’s a human being, and I should move away.” Clapping, loudly saying “hey bear!” and hiking in a group beats a bell. 👏
  • 🌻 We love to see wildflowers while hiking, and bears like them too! Grizzlies are known to eat many flowering plant species - some of the more common ones you might see include allium, arrowleaf balsamroot, beargrass (who wouldn’t eat the plant named after them?), camas, clover, cow parsnip, dandelion, and fireweed. Always be aware of your surroundings while recreating in bear country, even while you are re-enacting the Sound of Music in a wildflower meadow.
  • Get ready for another fee-free day! On August 25th, the National Park Service turns 110 years old, and to celebrate, US national parks are free to enter for all US citizens and residents.

Bonus fun fact: Did you know that some of our national parks are actually older than the Park Service itself? Yellowstone was the first national park, created on March 1, 1872 - 44 years BEFORE the NPS was established. 

Which national park are you visiting this Tuesday?
  • 🌭 You’ve been dreaming of roasted weenies and s’mores all summer…but right before your trip, you realize there are important rules to learn about campfires! Don’t panic, Betty’s here to drop some fire knowledge:

- If there is a burn ban, don’t light a fire - check fire restrictions in the area you will be recreating BEFORE arriving. You might not have cell service once you get there!
- When allowed and available, use established fire rings. If a log doesn’t fit inside the fire ring, don’t burn it.
- Never abandon your campfire or leave it unattended. A campfire is like a toddler - leave them unattended for one minute and you can have a disaster on your hands. And you can become financially responsible for fire damage as well, which might cost more than 18 years of parenting.
- Put out campfires fully - drown and stir campfires until you can safely touch the contents with your hand. Teton Interagency Fire recommends breaking up charred logs and covering them with dirt. It’s fun, it’s mud pies, it’s campfire soup. Bear Spray Shack is not liable for any of you that drink this soup.
If the positive environmental impact of reducing wildfire risk is not enough for you, here’s another reason to watch your sparks. We are in the business of saving you money, and violating fire restrictions and burn bans is PRICEY! You can be fined $5,000-$10,000 and/or go to prison for 6 months. Not a very fun end to a National Park vacation.

Sources: MTFireInfo, Teton Interagency Fire, NPS
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